Caraway Swirl Rye
From Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois.- Ingredients:
- 3 cups lukewarm water
- 1 Tbsp + 1 1/2 teaspoons granulated yeast (1 1/2 packets)
- 1 Tbsp + 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 Tbsp + 1 1/2 teaspoons caraway seeds
- 1 cup rye flour
- 5 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- Sprinkling of flour
- Cornstarch wash (1/2 tsp cornstarch and 1/2 cup water in microwave for 30 seconds or until clear)
Mix yeast, salt, and caraway seeds with the water in a large (5-quart) bowl.
Mix in the remaining dry ingredients without kneading, using a spoon (it's tough but keep going and as soon as there are no dry/flour spots left, you're golden).
Cover with a plate or a clean towel and allow to rest at room temperature for 2 hours.
You can bake the dough after this but it's a ton easier to work it after refrigeration. This dough can be used over the next two weeks (it gains more sourdough flavor as time goes by).
When ready to bake, dust the surface of the dough and your hands and tear off a grapefruit-size piece. Dust the piece with more flour and quickly (don't handle for more than 30-60 seconds) shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go. Using a rolling pin, flatten the ball into a 1/2 inch-thick oval (avoid using extra flour here or it might remain as a dry deposit in the caraway swirl. It doesn't need to look pretty or be a perfect oval.
Sprinkle the dough with caraway seeds. The amount can vary with your taste but you want to aim for little dough showing through if you truly want to see a swirl. Roll the dough from the short end like a jelly roll. Pinch the ends closed and place on a wooden board, or whatever, with a generous sprinkling of flour so it doesn't stick.
Allow to rest for 1 hour and 20 minutes (40 if it's not refrigerated).
Twenty minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 450F, with a baking stone placed on middle rack (if you have one - if not, use a cookie sheet and don't preheat it). Place an empty broiler tray on a lower oven shelf.
Using a pastry brush, paint the top crust with cornstarch wash and sprinkle with additional caraway seeds. Slash with deep parallel cuts across the loaf, using a serrated bread knife.
Slide loaf directly onto hot stone. Pour 1 cup of hot tap water into the broiler tray, and quickly close the oven door. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until deeply browned and firm.
Allow to completely cool before slicing.
Makes four 1-pound loaves. Easily doubled or halved.